Devices and methods include transmitting loopback signals for monitoring operation of a plurality of memory devices. In some embodiments, a first memory device may transmit a loopback strobe signal based at least in part on a strobe signal for the first memory device. In certain embodiments, a frequency of the loopback strobe signal is a fraction of the frequency of the strobe signal. In some embodiments, the first memory device may transmit a loopback data signal based at least in part on the strobe signal, wherein a frequency of the loopback strobe signal is the fraction of the frequency of the strobe signal.
Legal claims defining the scope of protection, as filed with the USPTO.
1. A memory system comprising: a plurality of memory devices coupled in series, wherein the plurality of memory devices comprises: a first memory device configured to: transmit a loopback strobe signal based at least in part on a strobe signal for the first memory device, wherein a frequency of the loopback strobe signal is a fraction of the frequency of the strobe signal; and transmit a loopback data signal based at least in part on the strobe signal, wherein a frequency of the loopback data signal is the fraction of the frequency of the strobe signal.
2. The memory system of claim 1 , wherein the frequency of the loopback strobe signal is a fraction of a frequency of a system clock used to generate the strobe signal.
3. The memory system of claim 2 , wherein the frequency of the loopback strobe signal is one-fourth of the frequency of the system clock.
4. The memory system of claim 1 , wherein the frequency of the loopback strobe signal is one-fourth of the frequency of the strobe signal.
5. The memory system of claim 1 , further comprising a phase generation circuitry configured to generate the loopback strobe signal from the strobe signal received from a host device.
6. The memory system of claim 5 , wherein the phase generation circuitry is configured to generate the loopback data signal from the strobe signal received from the host device.
7. The memory system of claim 6 , wherein the frequency of the loopback data signal is one-fourth of the frequency of the strobe signal.
8. The memory system of claim 1 , wherein the loopback strobe signal is defined as a double data rate signal.
9. The memory system of claim 1 , comprising a board to which the first memory device is coupled, wherein the first memory device comprises a dynamic random access memory (DRAM) device.
10. A method for operating a memory system to facilitate monitoring operation of memory devices implemented on the memory system, comprising: transmitting, at a first memory device of the memory system, a loopback strobe signal based at least in part on a strobe signal for the first memory device, wherein a frequency of the loopback strobe signal is a fraction of the frequency of the strobe signal; and transmitting, at the first memory device, a loopback data signal based at least in part on the strobe signal, wherein a frequency of the loopback data signal is the fraction of the frequency of the strobe signal.
11. The method of claim 10 , wherein the frequency of the loopback strobe signal is a fraction of a frequency of a system clock used to generate the strobe signal.
12. The method of claim 11 , wherein the frequency of the loopback strobe signal is one-fourth of the frequency of the system clock.
13. The method of claim 10 , wherein the frequency of the loopback strobe signal is one-fourth of the frequency of the strobe signal.
14. The method of claim 10 , further comprising generating, at a phase generation circuitry, the loopback strobe signal from the strobe signal received from a host device.
15. The method of claim 14 , further comprising generating, at the phase generation circuitry, the loopback data signal from the strobe signal received from the host device.
16. The method of claim 15 , wherein the frequency of the loopback data signal is one-fourth of the frequency of the strobe signal.
17. A method, comprising: receiving, at a first memory device, a strobe signal from a host device; generating a loopback strobe signal based at least in part on the strobe signal for the first memory device, wherein a frequency of the loopback strobe signal is a fraction of the frequency of the strobe signal; generating a loopback data signal based at least in part on the strobe signal, wherein a frequency of the loopback data signal is the fraction of the frequency of the strobe signal; and transmitting the loopback data signal and the loopback strobe signal to enable the host device to tune operation of a memory system comprising the first memory device.
18. The method of claim 17 , wherein the frequency of the loopback strobe signal is a fraction of a frequency of a system clock used to generate the strobe signal.
19. The method of claim 18 , wherein the frequency of the loopback strobe signal is one-fourth of the frequency of the system clock.
20. The method of claim 19 , wherein the frequency of the loopback strobe signal is one-fourth of the frequency of the strobe signal.
Cooperative Patent Classification codes for this invention. Click any code to explore related patents in that topic.
February 18, 2020
April 27, 2021
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